Madonna to attend grand opening of Hard Candy Fitness Toronto on February 11

Hard Candy Fitness members from around the world will audition to work out with the Material Girl at event

TORONTO –Hard Candy Fitness®, the global luxury fitness brand in partnership with Madonna and New Evolution Ventures, today announced that Madonna will host the official grand opening of Hard Candy Fitness® Toronto on Tuesday, February 11, 2014. The stunning 42,000 sq. ft. club is located in the heart of Toronto, in the Aura building at College Park (382 Yonge St.). The facility, which opened for workouts in October, is the brand’s largest in North America and only club in Canada and the United States.

As part of the festivities, Madonna is scheduled to lead her signature Addicted to Sweat cardio-based dance class with the Hard Candy Fitness Performance Team.

In addition to a selected group of Toronto club members, Hard Candy Fitness clubs from around the world will hold auditions to send members to work out with Madonna live at the event. Auditions will take place at Hard Candy Fitness clubs at the end of January, and the selected winners will be flown to Toronto. Auditions for Hard Candy Fitness Toronto members will take place on January 30 and February 1, with final cut auditions on February 10.

“We are very excited to share news of Madonna’s visit to our club and proud to host Hard Candy Fitness members from around the world at the grand opening,” said Leonard Schlemm, co-owner of Hard Candy Fitness Toronto.

Hard Candy Fitness has also recently opened clubs in Berlin and Rome, joining existing locations in Sydney, Santiago, Mexico City, Moscow, and St. Petersburg, Russia. The brand is expected to announce the opening of multiple locations this year, as it continues its expansion into destination cities around the world.

In Toronto, first round member auditions will be held at Hard Candy Fitness Toronto on Thursday, January 30 from 7:30 to 10 p.m. and Saturday, February 1 from 1 to 4 p.m. Final cut auditions will be held on Monday, February 10. You must be a member of Hard Candy Fitness Toronto before January 30 to qualify for auditions. Those who make the final cut must be available all day on February 10 and 11.

For more information about the Toronto club, exclusive membership opportunities, and how to enter the auditions:

About Hard Candy Fitness: Hard Candy Fitness is a global luxury fitness brand with a distinctive footprint. Clubs are focused on innovative group fitness programming and personalized fitness training. The brand was created in 2010 by Madonna, the world’s leading female pop-icon and well-known fitness enthusiast, and New Evolution Ventures, the world’s leading expert in fitness club development and operations. Hard Candy Fitness currently has club locations in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Santiago, Sydney, Mexico City, Rome, and Berlin.

About New Evolution Ventures® (NeV): Based in Northern California, New Evolution Ventures® (NeV) has a two-decade plus record of success in delivering superior returns on investment, specializing in the acquisition, development and operations management of both domestic and international fitness endeavors. Founded in 2008 by Mark Mastrov, Jim Rowley and Mike Feeney and following a strategic partnership with Vision Capital in 2011, the current team of NeV professionals is setting industry-wide standards one brand at a time. Operations have spanned over 20 countries worldwide and included hundreds of facilities. Our team’s industry experience has positioned NeV as a global leader in its field, expanding and reinventing the vision of fitness.

The Material Girl’s fitness brand — Hard Candy Fitness — has arrived in North America with the opening of a 42,000-square-foot club on Toronto’s Yonge Street.

Here are the details that were released today …

U.S. pop star Madonna poses for photographers on the red carpet at the opening of her fitness centre “Hard Candy Fitness” on Oct. 17 in Berlin. The fitness brand’s largest location is now open in Toronto.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 23, 2013

Madonna’s Hard Candy Fitness® opens its doors in Toronto

New club location in city’s downtown core now accepting memberships

TORONTO, ON – Hard Candy Fitness®, theglobal luxury fitness brand in partnership with Madonna and New Evolution Ventures (NeV), today announced the October opening of Hard Candy Fitness Toronto located at 382 Yonge St. The exquisite 42,000-square-foot facility is the brand’s first club in North America and the largest of all current Hard Candy Fitness gyms whose current locations include Rome, Sydney, Santiago, Mexico City, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Russia, and Berlin.

“We are very excited about the opening of Toronto’s new Hard Candy Fitness,” said Leonard Schlemm, chairman and co-owner of Hard Candy Fitness Toronto. “The club is in one of the city’s most beautiful condominium towers in arguably the most vibrant neighbourhood in Toronto.”

This full-scale club will exude the brand’s signature modern style with high-end amenities, extensive cardio, functional strength and personal training spaces, state-of-the-art equipment, saunas, steam rooms, custom juice bar and an all-around rooftop terrace. Hard Candy Fitness Toronto members will benefit from unique group fitness programming with studios for everything from cycling and Pilates to yoga and cardio-dance — including Hard Candy Fitness’ signature “Addicted to Sweat” workouts. Madonna and her long-time personal trainer, Nicole Winhoffer, were directly involved in the selection of each Addicted to Sweat instructor at the Toronto location.The club will be located on the top retail floor of the newly-constructed, 78-story Aura building at College Park. Built by the Canderel Real Estate Development Corporation, the building will be the tallest condominium in Canada with stunning views of the cityscape with an adjacent three acre park. The Toronto team, led by President and CEO Annick-Isabelle Marcoux, is made up of some of the top fitness experts and trainers in Canada.
Hard Candy Fitness is expected to announce the opening of several other locations this year as it continues its expansion into destination cities around the world. Madonna recently attended the official opening of Hard Candy Fitness in Berlin and taught an “Addicted To Sweat” class. Exclusive promotional membership packages are now available.

For details, or to enroll, visit www.hardcandyfitnesstoronto.com,
email info@hardcandyfitnesstoronto.com, or call 416.979.1645.About Hard Candy Fitness:Hard Candy Fitness is a global luxury fitness brand with a distinctive footprint. Clubs are focused on innovative group fitness programming and personalized fitness training. The brand was created in 2010 by Madonna, the world’s leading female pop icon and well-known fitness enthusiast, and New Evolution Ventures, the world’s leading expert in fitness club development and operations. Hard Candy Fitness currently has club locations in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Santiago, Sydney, Mexico City, Rome, and Berlin. For more information, please visit www.hardcandyfitness.com.About New Evolution Ventures® (NeV):Based in Northern California, New Evolution Ventures® (NeV) has a two-decade plus record of success in delivering superior returns on investment, specializing in the acquisition, development and operations management of both domestic and international fitness endeavours. Founded in 2008 by Mark Mastrov, Jim Rowley and Mike Feeney and following a strategic partnership with Vision Capital in 2011, the current team of NeV professionals is setting industry-wide standards one brand at a time. Operations have spanned over 20 countries worldwide and included hundreds of facilities. The team’s industry experience has positioned NeV as a global leader in its field, expanding and reinventing the vision of fitness. For more information, visit www.nev.com.About Aura at College Park:Canada’s tallest condominium will punctuate the skyline of Toronto like no other building. At 78 stories, Aura projects a commanding presence with granite, glass and stunning views of the adjacent three acre park. Built by the Canderel Real Estate Development Corporations, the space is more than just a residential building, and includes boutiques, restaurants, cafes and more. For more information, visit www.collegeparkcondos.com.

In case you missed this last week, the Material Girl will soon be adding “gym owner” to her resume.

Here are the details from Sun Media’s online source for entertainment news, WENN.COM:

Fitness fanatic Madonna is preparing to open the doors to her first gym in Mexico City next month.

The pop superstar, famed for her toned physique, is making plans to open Hard Candy Fitness global gyms in major cities around the world and will fly to Mexico to officially launch her first centre in Bosques de las Lomas.

Her manager Guy Oseary says, “Madonna’s world tours have taken us to many of our favourite cities around the world. We are looking forward to opening Hard Candy Fitness in many of these same places.”

The gym will be equipped with dance, bike and yoga studios, saunas and steam rooms, as well as a juice bar.

The Material Girl also hopes to open 10 more locations in Argentina, Russia, Brazil and throughout Europe and Asia.